We Prepared Him Room, in December

Contemplating Christmas 2017 through pictures reminds me of a sweet, sweet time with our family.  Why not talk about the gift of Jesus all year long? That's a good reason this post is so delayed : )

For the first time EVER we enjoyed Advent reading nearly everyday. It was coupled with a fire, cozy blankets & a good amount of picking on each other & being sent to their rooms.  You can't have it all right? Even with the frustration that occurs every single day here, God really honored our time with conversations we have never had with our children.

Over the course of the month, we were able to Prepare Him Room which ended up being the album name which included our favorite song of the season. It is called Who Would Have Dreamed. I must share just a few of the lyrics:

Prophets had foretold it, a mighty King would come
Long awaited Ruler, God’s Anointed One
But the Sovereign of all looked helpless and small
As God gave the world His own Son

And who would have dreamed or ever foreseen
That we could hold God in our hands?
The Giver of Life is born in the night
Revealing God’s glorious plan
To save the world

A mighty King, God's anointed one, sovereign of all, God's own son, giver of life, rescuer of the world. What beautiful words to describe Jesus. We pulled out the old trusty stable & characters when we got out the decorations & within minutes that baby Jesus we just described went missing! More on him later. Thankfully, we had the long-lasting, wrapped in swaddling clothes with a Sharpie marked smile, Jesus from Celebration Community Church. We love it. He was just the right size to fit between Mary & Joseph.

One of our most favorite ways to prepare him room is to kick off the holiday season with a children's chorus performance. While three of our four choir aged children, were drop outs for the fall semester, it was fine by me....no complaining, cheaper & less time there on Thursday afternoons! Charlotte moved up to the Chorus Choir which has about 35 kids ages eight through eighteen. She was forced to wear a new dress. We found it on Amazon for a mere $20. I had her wear tights & convinced her that everyone else would too. Boy was I wrong, haha! It's good to be unique & tights or not, she looked beautiful.

We had lots of family join us including my cousin Zak. Charlotte really enjoys hanging out with him. 

One highlight of this performance was a song called Oh, Children Come by Keith & Kristyn Getty. There was a good amount of a steady stomping & clapping. Arlo learned it & spent a good amount of time on our coffee table doing just that! I have plenty of video, no pictures but it is burned into my mind forever. He actually impressed us with his rhythm & sure was excited when the real thing started! Every song was just lovely, lyrics, voices, the heart behind the singing, the directing, accompaniment, and on & on.

After celebrating Thanksgiving, I got into a big fight with our Christmas tree, like I had scrapes on my arms as I wrapped lights, took them off & started over twice. They healed & I was still able to smile while we put ornaments on ; ) 

This year we bought each of the kids the superhero ornament that went with their Halloween Costume. Four out of the five ended up in the ornament grave yard that seems to grow by the year. The worst damaged was actually because of me! I dropped Spider-Man & he shattered ALL over the kitchen floor. I was in tears & precious Anson wanted me to squat down for a big hug & kiss. He told me I was still the best mom ever even if I break his Christmas ornaments, goodness gracious I laughed so hard! 

Here they are before all the limb amputations began...

Charlotte was nominated to be the star putter-onner this year mainly because if we cycle through five years of this, she could be a little harder to hoist to the top. These two traveled to Colorado in August & she was smiling ear to ear when she presented me with our new family ornament for the year. I call it a Daddy moose & a Charlotte moose.

Two other new editions to the tree are anything but new. My Grandmother Alene & Grandpa Joe, who have both passed away, made these during my late childhood. Porcelain figurines & dolls became a hobby in their retirement which was fun for us when we visited & were able to paint with them.  These two Santas had been on my Aunt Debbie's tree all these years & she encouraged me to take some home. I quickly packed them into my bag before she could change her mind ; )  The one in the back is from a set of maybe six or seven Santas through the years dated back to the 1920s to present day. So special to have. Thankfully I secured them well & they escaped decapitation, etc.

I added mistletoe to our entry way for one purpose & one purpose alone. I had him trained to kiss me anywhere & anytime I even said the word "mistletoe!" He gets more kisses than anyone at the Nest! Who can resist Darlin' Arlo? 

We had JOY hanging on the bannister of the staircase last year but due to my mistletoe kissing 2 year old, they were relocated. 

The new book for the season....it was adorable. I will spare you the details, just check it out from the library next season!

We were treated to Gaylord ICE by Grandma Virginia. It was really cold & more enjoyable to spend time together than look at the sculptures. GG agreed!  It was a bit of a let down when it was over so quickly. The kids were frozen though (Florida babies) so we got outta there quick as we could & headed over to Uncle Julio's for some Tex-Mex. 

Delicious everything topped off with the infamous chocolate piñata!

There were Christmas cookies & no gingerbread houses (woot!) Those really stress me out mainly because the frosting is ALWAYS a dud. My favorite named cookies "night of the walking bread" coined by Rob. Tis' the season for zombies I guess ; )

I asked Owen to dust the bookcases, sent Robby the picture & he responded with "I thought we didn't do Elf on the Shelf?" He's a comedian & I truly never tire of his jokes. I tell the girls all the time how important it is to marry someone who makes you laugh harder than anyone else. 

We made a couple visits to GGran's house to see her Dickens Village set complete with the train ie stealer of the show! It was really hard to follow directions & keep little fingers off. They, just like my brothers did as kids, raced from one end to the other watching it enter & exit the tunnel. The hidden mouse, which is about 3/4 inch in length was illusive yet again. I struggled until I received many clues. 

Charlotte's choir graced a nearby coffee shop & a long term care facility with Christmas Carols. I was having flashbacks of my choir days! I loved every second of it!

Uncle Scott & Uncle Kyle spent a long time with us on Christmas Eve & Christmas Eve Eve. Too much laughter to measure, multiple games of Twenty Questions which ended up being more divisive than anything...more laughter. Love those two.  

Now, we shall return to the beginning of the story. Baby Jesus was GONE the entire month. We looked everywhere. We asked the 2 year old if he took it, he would say yes & lead us on a wild goose chase. We quit believing him & what do you know? Minutes before leaving for the Christmas Eve service, Eloise stuck her foot in her boot & there he was! The timing could not have been more perfect, on the eve of his birth & we were all cheering.  Here is the proud finder... I bet Arlo was smirking around the corner.

For the first time in a long time we made it to a Christmas Eve service & it was absolutely wonderful. The Christmas story was read in multiple languages, we took communion, we sang, we prayed and experienced the result of preparing him room all month long. It was a win-win that no one caught on fire! Arlo was the most likely to do so with his quick, grabby hands, but I moved faster than him.

We all went to bed sleepy anticipating the following morning in which the kids gifted us by sleeping later than usual! I remember waking up at 4am as a kid. As a parent now, I feel that I should write apology notes weekly & that could be the subject of one of them.

Over all, we will look back & treasure this holiday season as we felt like we were in a bit of a new stage not having a newborn around & our oldest two able to grasp much of what we talked about.

the final verse of the song

Wondrous gift of heaven, the Father sends the Son
Planned from time eternal, moved by holy love
He will carry our curse and death He’ll reverse
So we can be daughters and sons

Dirty Windows - 500th post

It has been 2 months since any blog activity here at the Nest...that's a first. While there have been many occasions I desire to document, the hold up has been that this post is NUMBER 500 & I want it to be significant, not just Arlo's adventures in potty training. I guess that was pretty significant but not what I had in mind!  I could probably list 500 reasons why I have not written this post yet but I'll spare you ; ) 

The following picture has been in my draft folder for over two years. It may seem strange but this dirty window brought about a significant moment in our home. The front door of the house we moved into when we returned to the homeland was clearly chosen by someone who did not have a dog & five sticky handed children which included one drooling baby. It was constantly filthy & seemed utterly pointless to clean.

One afternoon, the sun poured through the immense branches of the pecan trees that killed our grass & right into our entry way. Charlotte at 6 years old walked by & said nonchalantly "Mom, the sun makes our windows so dirty!" I laughed out loud as I realized that she noticed the filth too. While it was silly, it ended up being a moment where God provided just the response she & I both needed.

I replied "Do you know what Charlotte? The light doesn't make our windows dirty, the light exposes how dirty they actually are."

Ephesians 5:13 says "When anything is exposed by the light it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light" 

The filth on those windows is my sin & Jesus himself says in John 8:12 that HE is the light of the world. In his love, "God has shone his light into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." 2 Corinthians 4:6

Sin is exposed but in confessing it to him, "he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9. 

Through the death & resurrection of Jesus, he has conquered sin & death. As a follower of Christ I know that when God looks at me, he doesn't see all the filthiness, instead he looks upon his Son who in love, paid the price for my sins. What a marvelous thing to celebrate.

The problem is, I still see all the dirtiness. I am well aware of my short comings & fall into the trap of feeling guilty & wondering "How can God love me?" I work so hard (sometimes) to keep the windows clean but it never fails, they get dirty again. In the same way, I am disappointed with myself for the snippy responses to my children, my desire for other things over time reading my bible, my struggle to be content in all aspects of the current stage of life. The list goes on & on....that could be another list of 500 things ; ) 

Specifically speaking of lack of Windex & paper towels applied routinely to windows in our home, I always think that when we move, I will keep my windows cleaner. Guess what? THEY LOOK THE SAME, HAHA!  Right now on our back door is mud from happy trench digging hands & Bella's 13 year old snout, splashes from when Arlo is "helping" me clean with a rag he dipped in that dirty snouted dog's water bowl, some snot & plenty of other gross-ness. But on one of the top panes is a cross drawn by one of the girls (by spit on their finger of course). They said "Mom, isn't that great to see?" Yes, it is. That cross covers every bit of my sin.

The windows of my home look dirty to me but to God, the "windows" of my heart look spotless, without blemish due to the sacrifice of his son. The best part is that I didn't have to clean them AND I don't have to keep working to keep them clean! Tomorrow, Resurrection Day is cause for great celebration & praise to our Heavenly Father. There is much to be thankful for. 

In closing, I want to share the lyrics to a song by Ellie Holcomb. She sings to me via my Bluetooth speaker while I clean the kitchen, fold laundry or collapse on the couch for a 5 minute, life -saving snooze when I can't make it through our read aloud time.

What a great reminder.

Marvelous Light

I am not who I once was, defined by all the things I’ve done
Afraid my shame would be exposed, afraid of really being known
But then you gave my heart a home

So I walked out of the darkness and into the light
From fear of shame into the hope of life
Mercy called my name and made a way to fly
Out of the darkness and into the light

Years of keeping secrets safe, wondering if I could change
‘Cause when you’re hiding all alone, your heart can turn into a stone
And that’s not the way I want to go

So I walked out of the darkness and into the light
From fear of shame into the hope of life
Mercy called my name and made a way to fly
Out of the darkness and into the light

There’s no place I’d rather be
Your light is marvelous, your light is marvelous
You have come to set us free
You are marvelous, your light is marvelous to me

So I walked out of the darkness and into the light
From fear of shame into the hope of life
Mercy called my name and made a way to fly
Out of the darkness and into the light

Bernice & The Super Squad

The Super Squad rocked the block that Halloween back in 2017 when I accidentally took a blogging hiatus! I do love coordinated costumes & was glad that they consented to my suggestion ; ) Once we decided on super heroes, it didn't take long for them to make their decisions. Craftiness has been on the forefront of my mind lately so making costumes was a given. It was perfect timing for sure! My mom & I had a weekend away in Fredericksburg so packed up the sewing machine & all necessary items to knock out some capes.

There were lots of lists & lots of trying to remember whose pants are what color, who is refusing to wear a mask & who is SO picky about the type of fabric they wear....child numero uno.

My mom & her sewing machine, my goodness! She (as always) took the lead role & I gladly accepted the assistant to the sewing genius. I went ahead & bought super hero T-shirts to work around. We planned to make five capes, one skirt & accessories. Hobby Lobby provided some iron on decals for the capes which saved us SO much time & looked much better than what we could have come up with.  Spider-Man needed a spider on the back of his cape so we were on the hunt for something we could use. We came across some decorative webs & I went to town cutting pieces off until we had the perfect shape. It worked out well! I FaceTimed Anson & showed him the blue cape we made & his face just dropped. He said that he had really wanted a red cape & I felt so bad for my little Spider-Man that we got right to work on a new cape as requested. Thankfully we hadn't sewn that hand cut spider yet! I might have said "tough luck bud," probably not though.

We made multiple trips to Wal-Mart which is probably not the place that people frequent when on a weekend away in the lovely town of Fredericksburg! It got funny really fast when we kept going back & spending more & more money as we changed ideas. We were quickly reminded that homemade costumes are not always the cheaper way to go! We walked over to the Halloween section & saw the official Spider-Man & Batman costumes complete with muscles for a mere $15. After quickly considering how ecstatic the boys would be if we pulled those costumes out of the bag, we were at the checkout!  At least those were checked off the list. Over the course of the weekend we knocked out all the capes, the skirt & a couple of Wonder Woman accessories.

The Super Squad prep was in full swing!  You may wonder who the Bernice mentioned in the title is. To put it simply, she was the star of our favorite fall book & is still referred to often. The book Sophie's Squash by Pat Zeitlow Miller is just darling. It is the story of a little girl named Sophie who goes to the market & comes home with a yellow squash. Instead of letting her mom cook it for dinner she names it Bernice, draws a smiling face & assumes responsibility of sweetly caring for her. Over time Bernice begins to look a little splotchy & feel mushy like any squash would. All said & done, Bernice is buried in the garden when the cold season comes & when spring arrives, Sophie finds two baby squash named Bonnie & Baxter in which she shares "you look just like your mother!" It is full of humor, lovely illustrations & will be added to the library at the Nest. Here's Arlo enjoying it again just the other day...

We were complete procrastinators with getting a pumpkin to carve & when we found just the right one, Eloise & I named her Bernice as she asked me to help buckle her in. The continued procrastination worked in her favor but I guess it was only right to never carve her! She was well cared for but even with all the love shown to her, she began to rot just like the one true Bernice. Eloise was actually a little sad. We have had some good laughs in relation to the book. Once at the grocery store, the girls got my attention & said "Look! It's Bernice!" pointing at the line next to us. They started whisper screaming "Berneeeeeeece! Noooooo! Don't goooo with her!" Just last weekend I was about to cut up a couple butternut squash & someone wanted to verify that it was not Bonnie & Baxter. Anyway, that's probably more than you want to hear about Bernice but I want to remember later : )  

The next day was Halloween & contrary to the weather report, there was only a sprinkle of rain! Here's the Squad!

Anson requested spiders on his wrists to shoot webs....of course he got some! Only bad thing is that they came in a pack of a million & they love to have them with their bath toys. I have squealed on more than one occasion when one sneaks out of the tub and onto the bathroom floor! Bella Bella Blue Dog benefitted from the additional cape. She looked stunning ; )

We got some great pictures but there are always the greatest ones too...

After a restful afternoon, we got costumes back on & headed out to the street.

Arlo figured it out the mission rather quickly & decided he hated riding in the wagon. He got a mini package of Swedish Fish at the first house & held onto it nearly the entire time! Even once we were home & sifting through the rest of the candy it was tight in his grip! We did strap him in on multiple occasions & I think he figured we weren't paying enough attention so he would chew his way into a package & have chocolate all over his face, ha! I'm pretty sure I looked like that later that evening & maybe once a day when I would sneak into the pantry when no one was looking ; ) 

It was almost embarrassing to see how much candy we ended up with. We had a few pieces then all squeezed in to our room to our bed to watch the Astros play in the World Series. It was an evening where we felt like we didn't have a bunch of teeny tiny kids. While they are still young, they can stay up past 8 without losing their marbles...most of the time ; )

Here's the loot.

I always vow to get moving on next year's costumes more that two weeks in advance. Let's see how this year goes!

Celebrating Arlo

The littlest of the bunch turned two in October & boy did he enjoy a relaxing day at home. I think we all did! It's like he knew it was his special day & that we would let him snuggle up in our bed no matter how early he woke up. Around 5:30 am he peeped & I swooped in to get him before he woke up his roomies. We crawled into bed & got all cozied up together. He will snuggle FOREVER so we did..until everyone else came in to wish him "Happy Birthday!"  They are always so loud ; )

Arlo liked posing for his picture...ha! He takes awhile to wake up in the morning. I think he gets it from the Ellis side of the family.

He really perked up when we served him ten cinnamon rolls!

Some birthdays we go all out. Some years we do the opposite. This was one of those EXTREMELY simple birthdays & we loved it.  We got him two Spot lift the flap books that we have read too many times to count. On birthday eve, I printed out pictures of Spot the dog & let each of the kids color whichever & however they wanted. We slipped some twine through hole & hung the from the light fixture over the kitchen table.

Lolo said that while Arlo likes Spot, he would really like a silly picture of himself. If his teeth happen to look like that, we may request donations to his orthodontic spending account in lieu of gifts! Arlo really did like all the dangling pictures as evidenced by his constant climbing onto the kitchen table, pointing & saying "Spot" over & over.

He received some fun gifts including his very own battery operated train! Two siblings (that happen to closely resemble each other) have trains that a little someone likes to play with. Uncle Kyle's gift was a win-win-win! I love baby hands.

Flipping through pictures of the day it looks like he doesn't even have sisters! The three amigos had such a wonderful time playing together which makes this mama happy.

We built SO many train tracks that were much cooler than what we usually build.  While Daddy was at work, we broke the rules & emptied a couple shelves of his library to add some height to our track.

Thomas the Train happened to be a bit faster than the old engines & would rear end them as the raced down the track. We found out how strong he really was when Robby put a 1 liter Nalgene bottle on the kitchen table & he pushed it right across!

When they ran out of books, they moved on to Bella. She is such a great (& tolerant) dog at nearly 13 years old to happily or rather unhappily provide a stunt option at the end of the track! 

The bounce house was in use for about 4 hours that day & Arlo decided it was pretty exciting to jump with siblings.

I sat & talked to him for a bit while we watched Elo the Butterfly Whisperer catch butterflies with her bare hands. He was making the most hilarious faces.

After lots of bouncing & a long nap, we were ready for guests. GGran, Grammy & Grandpa joined us for dinner & cake. We made a lasagna & the ravishing two year old ate more than the rest of our children combined! I guess he's a growing boy!

Again, minimalist décor on the cake. Some printables cut into squares & taped onto toothpicks placed atop a Betty Crocker cake. Simplicity at it's finest.

a spontaneous family picture always captures such natural smiles.

Arlo was the happy recipient of a cool tool set & a Little People RV camper he can either push around or pop open to play with what's inside. Both have had plenty of attention since the big day.

Arlo must have emailed GGran to let her know she should wear green. He loves his GGran...and the jellybeans she brings everytime she comes to visit!

Grammy & Papa are up at the top of the "like list" too.

I think we are at the tippy top of that list.

These two, oh my. They are sweet together! When Robby was leaving for work that morning he said "Bye Arlo, I love you!" & for the first time ever Arlo responded with "I luh=oo too!" All of our hearts just melted.

He is darling alright!